Heather jerked back instinctively, her breath catching in her throat as the serpent revealed itself in full. It was long and sinuous, its dark, iridescent scales catching the dim light in a way that made it look almost wet.
Its body curled slowly around the glass display case, moving like a ribbon in water. Heather's stomach tightened.
She had never been particularly afraid of snakes, but there was something deeply wrong about finding one here, of all places.
"Who keeps a snake in an office?" she muttered under her breath.
The snake's tongue flicked out lazily, testing the air, but it didn't move aggressively. It simply wrapped itself tighter around the display case—as if guarding what was inside. The necklace.
Heather took a cautious step backward, eyes still locked on the creature.
She let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding and tried to steady herself. The room felt ten degrees warmer.
